Hot Topics:

Lynch challenges Markey for Senate seat

By Jack Minch, jminch@sentinelandenterprise.com

Updated:
02/01/2013 06:30:56 AM EST

U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch launched his bid for the U.S. Senate on Thursday, triggering what is sure to be a hotly contested Democratic primary against his congressional colleague, U.S. Rep. Edward Markey.

With North Central Massachusetts poised to play a key role in the outcome of the April 30 primary, an endorsement from a local politician could help put either candidate over the top. So, who do our elected leaders support?

As of Thursday, only two area Democrats had taken sides. Fitchburg Mayor Lisa Wong and state Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, are both backing Markey.

"As the dean of the congressional delegation, (Markey) has done a good job in carrying the issues for the entire delegation," Wong said. "So even though he doesn't work for Fitchburg, he is a congressman I have worked with on several issues."

Eldridge, whose district includes Shirley and Ayer, said Markey's positions on environmental issues align with his own.

"First of all, Markey is a natural leader on a couple of issues, the first is climate change," said Eldridge, adding that he and Markey both support policies that promote the development of alternative sources of energy.

U.S. Reps. Niki Tsongas, D-Lowell, and Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, have worked in Congress with both candidates. They both said it is too early to endorse.

Advertisement

"I'm watching with interest as candidates come forward, and I'm sure at some point I will make an endorsement," said Tsongas

McGovern said he is looking for a candidate who is "very similar" to Kerry and cautioned that additional candidates could be stepping forward. Asked if he will enter the race, McGovern said, "I would rather stick needles in my eyeballs."

Lynch is casting himself as a "bread and butter" Democrat who learned firsthand how government can offer a hand up in hard times. On Thursday, Lynch capped a day-long tour of Massachusetts, including stops in Springfield and Worcester, with a rally at a packed iron workers union hall in the blue collar neighborhood of South Boston, where Lynch grew up and worked as an iron worker for 18 years before entering politics.

"I know what it's like to stand in an unemployment line," Lynch said to hundreds of supporters. "I learned that in severe economic downturns, that sometimes the only force that can correct that inequity, or give people a chance to lift themselves out of difficulty, or provide some temporary relief, is the government."

Lynch also criticized efforts to line up Democratic support for Markey.

Kerry, who will be sworn in as secretary of state today, is among those supporting Markey, who also starts the race with a substantial financial advantage -- $3.1 million in his campaign account compared to Lynch's $740,000 as of the most recent campaign finance reports.

Markey welcomed Lynch to the race even as he portrayed himself as the better heir to Kerry's legacy.

"We need a senator who continues to stand up for the progressive values that Kerry and Massachusetts believe in and who's focused on creating the jobs our economy needs," Markey said in a written statement.

The special election to replace Kerry will be held on June 25.

State Rep. Dennis Rosa, D-Leominster, said he is more familiar with Lynch than Markey, but does not have enough information to make an endorsement.

"(Lynch) is a little bit more conservative and more blue collar," said Rosa. "I kind of like those traits. He knows what it's like to get his hands dirty and what people go through on a day to day basis."

State Rep. Stephen DiNatale, D-Fitchburg, has also not made a decision.

"I'm looking for someone who is a moderate, who is going to be able to work obviously with both sides of the aisle," DiNatale said. "That is the chief concern as far as I'm concerned, and I believe that is the concern for the citizens of Massachusetts."

State Sen. Jennifer Flanagan, D-Leominster, is on the fence, as well, said her spokeswoman. The region's newest member of the state Legislature, Rep. Jon Zlotnik, D-Gardner, said he has been too busy learning the ropes on Beacon Hill to give the Senate race much though.

Reporter Michael Hartwell and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)
Comments made here are the sole responsibility of the person posting them; these comments do not reflect the opinion of The Sentinel and Enterprise. So keep it civil.